UNH Wildcats 2021/2022 - Return of the Champions of October?

[Dan]

Since BC and UNH will be playing each other...

If not Souza, who do you guys want? Too soon to take a chance on Ciocco? Ayers? From my perspective Ayers is not the guy.

NO.

UNH has made the lazy hire of least resistance, turning in zero effort and handing the keys to a limited resume, likeable alumni assistant. How’s that worked out?

Ciocco has the same resume as Souza, poor results and limited experience at schools with terrible records. A half season of success at MC doesn’t change that, especially when coaching for a hands on and directly involved recruiting HC. You don’t base a HC search on recency bias...

BC was a recruiting wagon well before Ayers, the only difference now is it hasn’t translated like it once did. If York retired today BC would want nothing to do with him.

Apparently, they’re both nice guys. That means nothing by itself. Neither would even be on the radar if their Alma Mater was Maine. Time for UNH to grow up and make a broad search. There are plenty of nice guys who graduated from any number of schools and/or have proven resumes.

Easy hires get you killed, no mater if you stumble into blind success once in a while (soccer). Hubbard got the job because he grew up in Durham. He happens to be tremendous. UNH got lucky.

Enough small-mindedness; hopefully a change is made in the near future. Hopefully UNH mixes in some elbow grease, develops a plan and puts effort into the process this time. Find the best guy. Not your buddy.

[Felger]

Since BC and UNH will be playing each other...

If not Souza, who do you guys want? Too soon to take a chance on Ciocco? Ayers? From my perspective Ayers is not the guy.

Well last week there was a vote on here for Jeff Guiliano....

Find it ironic that Ayers spent 4 years as a player at UNH and appeared in 2 Frozen Fours and 1 national championship game.

In 8 years coaching at BC he's participated in 2 FF's and no NC games.

[HockeyRef]

The corona has certainly caused disruptions and challenges for college hockey, but this has affected ALL of college hockey. At the end of the day, talent will drive the majority of the results on the ice. Teamwork, effort and puck luck certainly enter the picture, then you have talent. UNH just doesnt have enough of it and hasnt for 7-10 years.

At some point, if the food put on the table sucks, the cook stirring the pot either lacks in proper preparation, has mediocre culinary skills or sucks at bringing in enough high quality ingredients. Go ahead and paint the walls, decrease the restaurant size by 10 feet, install a big screen tv behind the bar, or offer more specials, but at some point, time to put someone new behind the apron. Or you keep eating the same sub-par Whitt food and tell yourself that it tastes just as good as Comm Ave food, though you better not lose sight of the food joints in Grand Forks, Ann Arbor and Duluth.

Totally catch your drift...sometimes you get better meals at the 'hole in the wall' joints than you do at the Ritz.

[J.D.]

Agree with most (if not all) of your points, J.D. Ayers certainly has an opportunity, especially if he is indeed second-in-charge behind York these days, as York has to be swinging somewhere in the vicinity of the 17th fairway/18th teebox in his illustrious career. The downturn (exaggerated this season, likely due to unique circumstances) in recent years from York's apex seasons can't help Ayers, and I'm sure the chirping little maggot down in Storrs is stoking discussion (if anyone even listens to him any more) about how York just isn't the same without him. Please reassure me BC is smart enough not to bring that tool back to The Heights when York finally steps down, please? Rest assured, I'm not rooting for BC, but I do detest that smarmy bast!d.

Heh UConn just got swept by NU. If history is any indication they will bow out again without winning a playoff game. I think he is close to being in the discussion though. He has done a decent job. Not great, decent. In terms of current head coaches, Greg Brown and JD Forrest will probably get a look. All depends if they look outside the family.

[J.D.]

Alright, you guys don't want a lazy hire who has UNH ties...

Make a run at Eric Lang. I actually want BC to take a look at him. Every ECAC and Hockey East program should be looking at him. Miraculous what he's done at AIC.

[After the Whistle]

Absolutely agree J.D. Almost in College has arrived with only one plausible reason why - Lang!

[Dan]

Alright, you guys don't want a lazy hire who has UNH ties...

Make a run at Eric Lang. I actually want BC to take a look at him. Every ECAC and Hockey East program should be looking at him. Miraculous what he's done at AIC.

I don't necessarily want to see UNH make a run at anyone; I want to see an objective and developing search that opens broadly and seeks to identify the proper fit and the best direction for success without bias. I'm not sold on Lang at a larger program, but I'd certainly want to give him an interview, listen and learn with an open mind. If he impresses and rises to the top so be it, but zeroing in early is another recipe for disaster, IMO...

My list of candidates would start with Clarkson's Casey Jones, Associate HC's Dane Jackson, Bill Muckalt, Joe Dumais & Ron Rolston, and junior hockey bench boss Fred Harbinson, among others. There are a number of other great candidates to be considered, but my goal would be to cast a wide net and aim high. Not to settle on, and for, low hanging fruit...

If I was going to consider a UNH alum, I'd want to speak to Kevin Dean - to see if his professional pedigree might translate a la Andy Murray at Western Michigan (depending on who he'd target for assistant jobs).

If I wanted to take a flyer on an unproven assistant I'd consider Peter Mannino at Colorado College. He seemed to recruit at a VERY high level in one season at Miami, but gets an incomplete as Rico was fired and most of his prospects decommitted and scattered across college hockey.

Ciocco may end up being a GUY - but he's not ready to be the guy at UNH. It would be the equivalent of Alabama hiring a Vanderbilt linebackers coach because he's a Tide alum. When that LB coach comes back to Bama, works his way up to DC and proves himself THEN perhaps there's a match.

That said, color me far from certain UNH will even make a change...

[HockeyRef]

The thing I've been running around in my head has been well, it's not that the crew haven't been able to get decent players into the pipe line...I mean, Stutzle? Of course landing those big fish and having them put on the blue and white is another story all together as we all know. "Its not for a lack of trying" I guess is what I'm trying to say. And far be it from me to demean the current players (I know no one wants to do that). I know they are working hard.

Dan, I'm with you...the fact that change will prob not come seems so much more certain...I just don't know what to think of it all anymore. Alot of the people I know who continue to be long term fans just love and seem happy with going to games, drinking a few beers with friends, enjoying a win or two etc. Talking about the 'good ole days' of going to Regionals, FF's winning the coveted HE. They are really not that wrapped up in all of this. I wish I could be more like them and for many games that's my vibe too sans those memories as I wasn't a fan then. Heard about it, just wasn't interested. Now it's a 'bucket list' goal of mine to win a HE, go to a FF...you guys were lucky.

Have to laugh I met Charlie Coyle at the last ever Commonwealth Classic hockey game. Told him I was a UNH fan he said "well, I hope they come through for you". Yeah, me too Charlie...me too!

[J.D.]

On Lang, I guess what would be the next kind of job for him if not a program like UNH? No guarantee he succeeds but I'm not sure where he's supposed to go next to prove himself more than taking AIC from worst program in D1 to what it has become.

Casey Jones is interesting. He is another guy I want BC to look at if they go outside the family. But would he leave Clarkson for UNH? I don't see that happening.

[norbert]

Since BC and UNH will be playing each other...

If not Souza, who do you guys want? Too soon to take a chance on Ciocco? Ayers? From my perspective Ayers is not the guy.

I’m not in the D1 coaching circles but we need someone who isn’t an alumni. Fresh start not hanging on to a good career hoping it works as a coach

[norbert]

On Lang, I guess what would be the next kind of job for him if not a program like UNH? No guarantee he succeeds but I'm not sure where he's supposed to go next to prove himself more than taking AIC from worst program in D1 to what it has become.

Casey Jones is interesting. He is another guy I want BC to look at if they go outside the family. But would he leave Clarkson for UNH? I don't see that happening.

I’d rather have the lyrics to Black Betty before finding a new coach. Really it’s come to the instrumental version? Oh my ***** for the day is done

[Chuck Murray]

I don't necessarily want to see UNH make a run at anyone; I want to see an objective and developing search that opens broadly and seeks to identify the proper fit and the best direction for success without bias. I'm not sold on Lang at a larger program, but I'd certainly want to give him an interview, listen and learn with an open mind. If he impresses and rises to the top so be it, but zeroing in early is another recipe for disaster, IMO...

My list of candidates would start with Clarkson's Casey Jones, Associate HC's Dane Jackson, Bill Muckalt, Joe Dumais & Ron Rolston, and junior hockey bench boss Fred Harbinson, among others. There are a number of other great candidates to be considered, but my goal would be to cast a wide net and aim high. Not to settle on, and for, low hanging fruit...

If I was going to consider a UNH alum, I'd want to speak to Kevin Dean - to see if his professional pedigree might translate a la Andy Murray at Western Michigan (depending on who he'd target for assistant jobs).

If I wanted to take a flyer on an unproven assistant I'd consider Peter Mannino at Colorado College. He seemed to recruit at a VERY high level in one season at Miami, but gets an incomplete as Rico was fired and most of his prospects decommitted and scattered across college hockey.

Ciocco may end up being a GUY - but he's not ready to be the guy at UNH. It would be the equivalent of Alabama hiring a Vanderbilt linebackers coach because he's a Tide alum. When that LB coach comes back to Bama, works his way up to DC and proves himself THEN perhaps there's a match.

That said, color me far from certain UNH will even make a change...

Dan, it's hard to disagree with anything in your post - I hate when that happens BTW ;-) - and I especially agree with the parts in boldface. I wouldn't dismiss Ciocco out of hand, and I'd probably agree to talk with him if there was mutual interest, but I think (hope?) he would be a dark horse contender. I'm still kind of annoyed Blue Skies didn't "make a run" at Barr TBF, but that would have been uncharacteristically decisive action on his part. He's only done it once (1) in 20+ years at UNH, and even then, I'm pretty sure there was an ulterior motive at play.

But yeah, I expect the new AD will give MS7 one more year (at least) to prove himself, allowing the new AD to take inventory and determine what the successful HC candidate profile looks like, work up a list, and then make a decision 12 months (give or take) from now.

[mookie1995]

....Ciocco may end up being a GUY - but he's not ready to be the guy at UNH. It would be the equivalent of South Carolina hiring a Vanderbilt linebackers coach because he's a Gamecocks alum. When that LB coach comes back to SC, works his way up to DC and proves himself THEN perhaps there's a match..

wouldn't this be more applicable??

[Chuck Murray]

wouldn't this be more applicable??

I see what you did there. ;-)

[Dan]

wouldn't this be more applicable??

Thanks for chiming in Tennessee...